2nd Series 04/2 - Point Of View
by Macx
Summary: Ace has to deal with the revelation of what his empathic apprentice felt last night.


  
**Point of View**   
by Birgit Staebler

Ace sat in his study, playing with a small, round stone, perfectly smooth and made of granite. It was a dull black, without flaws, and weighed a lot more than it looked like. He rolled it around in his palm, staring at the barely reflecting surface and wished he could think of a solution to his current problem. Well, problem might be too much a word for it. It was more like... a discomfort. Using a shard of magic he floated the ball over to his other palm, then back again to the left, spinning it gently. Smiling at this mastery of levitation, Ace repeated the procedure, then stopped.   
Playing around didn't solve this embarrassment and neither would sitting here. It was by now 11 am and a beautiful day outside. He should have every reason to be happy and content, but he was troubled. Last night had been pleasant to say the least. He had taken Mona out for dinner, they had danced, gone to one of the new galleries in town that had a special midnight showing, and had finally ended up in the Magic Express. From then on, the evening had turned into pleasure and Ace felt a tingle shoot through him at the recollection. If he had ever had any doubts about whether or not his feelings were finally returned without restrained, this night had erased it.   
A smile crossed his lips and the granite ball was momentarily forgotten. Mona's intense presence and his desire had mixed into a whirlwind of events and he didn't regret a single minute. Neither had Mona. They had woken around 7, neither really inclined to get up, but Mona had had to leave. She still had a rehearsal this morning and several photo shoots for the new press booklet to do. Both knew that Blackjack would probably grow another ulcer when he found out where his daughter had been -- the whole night. At this point in their relationship, neither cared. It had taken both too long to finally find back together and for the first time, Mona had admitted that their relationship took first place over anything else.   
Ace leaned back and perched the granite ball on his finger tips, then gave it a little shove with some magic, making it spin gently. After a few second he spread his fingers and it fell into his palm, coming to rest.   
But this morning he had discovered a new problem and he had no idea how to solve it.   
Cosmo.   
Not that Cosmo was the real, actual problem, but it centered around him and just thinking of it let a scarlet blush creep up Ace's cheeks. His friend, since he had finally admitted to the powers inside him, was very receptive to the presence of other magicians, namely Ace right now. Especially Ace. It might be their close proximity or something else, but Cosmo was empathetically aware of his friend and partner, and in the past it had been helpful when confronted with a problem of the criminal nature. He could sense the Magic Force, though that was dangerous all in itself. The Magic Force when released in an untamed and wild amount could hurt Cosmo severely if the teenager had no shields up, or even then. Then there were emotions. Cosmo had felt it when Ace had been afraid, terrified, in pain or simply agitated.   
Ace sighed.   
They had thought it was only negative emotions, the ones calling for help, but last night and this morning's encounter had proven differently. Cosmo also felt the positive ones.... and had been confronted with them like with a sledge hammer between the eyes.

_"Next time you bring home company of the female persuasion let me know so I can throw up a shield. That is not how I need to be woken up at one in the morning."_

The blush returned and Ace wished he could disappear in a hole somewhere. Cosmo had felt it all! God, how much more embarrassing could it get? He knew he had to talk with his friend, but how should he do that without stammering and trying to justify himself? There was nothing to justify. It was his private life and Cosmo knew Mona and Ace had a more than platonic relationship. He had never hidden it!   
Still.... there was this fine line between knowing and actually *feeling* it.   
Ace dropped the black ball and sighed. He couldn't tap dance around this problem and he couldn't just let it drown in silence. Next time.... Sheesh, could he even forget that there was a potential listener the next time? Only if Cosmo would get his shields up....   
Leaving his study he walked into the living room/library and stopped as he discovered Cosmo lounging in his favorite position on the stuffed chair: leaning against one arm, legs dangling over the other, a bag of popcorn in one hand, the other busy stuffing the sweet stuff into his mouth, and the remote on his lap. Now he looked up, gave Ace his usual grin and mumbled, "Hi, Ace," around a mouthful of popcorn.   
"You busy?" Ace asked.   
Cosmo swallowed the popcorn and shrugged. "Nah, just catching up on the latest gossip." He made a vague gesture toward the screen where SensaNews was reporting the latest about the stars and starlets. "What's up?"   
"Cosmo, about last night...."   
Cosmo blinked, then shrugged again. "No problemo, man. I know you didn't do it on purpose."   
Ace refused to acknowledge the blush coming back. "No, I didn't. I'd like to apologize for putting you into such an...." he coughed, "...uncomfortable situation."   
Cosmo pushed the 'mute' button and suddenly the room was too silent for Ace's liking. "Hey, it's no biggie... Just caught me a bit by surprise."   
Now that was a mild word for it, the magician thought wryly. He knew what he had felt last night and it had been intense. Broadcasting that to a third party who didn't even know what was going on....   
"Does Mona know?"   
Now the blush attacked and Ace felt it burn hotly on his cheeks. "Ah, no," he managed.   
Cosmo grinned even more and he felt like strangling his younger friend just right now, this very moment.   
"And if you lose a single word about...." Ace threatened.   
"And embarrass myself? Nah...."   
Embarrass yourself? Ace shook his head. He had no clue how Mona would react to this and he wondered if that would put a dent into their relationship. Well, it would make her wary around the Express. Not that Cosmo could pick up on her; he was solely tuned into Ace.   
"You are okay?" he tried to steer the conversation into safer waters.   
"Huh, yeah, why shouldn't I be? It's not like I'm inexperienced." Cosmo stopped as Ace raised his eyebrows and blushed himself now.   
"I see."   
"But not because of the link!" the younger man added quickly.   
"Ah."   
Cosmo glared at him. "How about we leave it at you're sorry and I don't mind. Just let me know next time."   
"By calling ahead?" Ace teased to hide his own discomfort.   
Cosmo's brow furrowed in thought. "Uh, no, but...." He stared at the half empty popcorn bag. "I can't very well leave the Express every time you might come back with Mona, y'know."   
Ace coughed. "No. It's your home as much as mine."   
"And shielding every possible night is a drain."   
Ace sighed. "We need to train your shields," he decided. "When you pick up on my emotions..."   
"Then it's already too late. Dude, I woke right in the middle of it. The last thing on my mind was a shield at the time."   
Ace's face burned crimson once more and he wondered why this was embarrassing him so much. He was a grown man, for heaven's sake! And Cosmo wasn't a little kid. He knew exactly what a relationship could turn into and had known before they had even met. Ace had thankfully been spared from telling a teenager about the birds and the bees, as well as explaining safety to him. Still, it didn't give him any comfort.   
"Ah...." he coughed.   
Cosmo's grin only told him how much the teen was enjoying this.   
"But I think in time I can block it," Cosmo added.   
"We will train your shields," Ace decided.   
"And you want to do that how? I mean, we are already training my defenses and I can block most of you out even at close proximity when you use the Magic Force, but how do you train that?"   
Ace was at a loss. "We'll find a way," he mumbled, gazing at the mute TV where an interview with the mayor was going on.   
"Huh, tell me when you found it," Cosmo grinned.   
Ace shot him a dark look and settled down on the couch. This needed some work.   
Who was he kidding?   
This would need a lot of work!   



End file.
